Blogging About Blogging
Awareness of the outside world. Commentary on the form, both from late 2019, Whatever: The Death of the Blog, Again, Again and Viva Carlos: Is Blogging Dead?, also a comment on commenting by VC [Meh].
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Here’s to nine years and post #3195. [We begin. Again. December 22, 2011]
As I said back in 2015, I’m happy with the way the blog is ticking along. I have no plans to monetize nor to add Certain Words in order to score higher on Google searches, not matter how many cajoling SEO emails fill up my inbox. [Blogging Goals, Or Not]
I’d love to have the participation of Whatever‘s comment section, but I wouldn’t want his trolls. So, I’m good.
If pressed, I would confess to one change. I’d love more blogger meetups. I don’t count friends who are now bloggers. That is a good thing. That is a different thing. I’m talking about people you have followed online, chatted with, and are now meeting in shared airspace.
Screen shot of a recent post using a photo from a blogger meetup in 2018. Not me. My photo.
2018. Her version, Literary Dates: A New York Christmas Tour
2018. My version, [Armchair Travel Opportunity, #literarydatesbookclub]
2020. Photo reused for holiday effect (I assume), “After living in New York City for 15 years and having a couple of Christmassy book tours under my belt, I now feel it’s time to throw my ring into an ultimate guide to Christmas in New York City. Yup. I did it. This will be the ultimate of the ultimatest of NYC Christmas guides. And bonus…I’ll end with some cozy, Christmassy reads.” Literary Dates: Christmas in New York City- A Local’s Guide
The latter post is what gave me the idea to harp on about blogger meetups. Proper photo credit was given in both cases.
I have had two blogger meetups, both in New York City. One I wrote a post on, above. One I didn’t. Second meetup was more sit & talk, less engage in post-worthy activities. Contacting another blogger, also NYC, ended up as an invitation to write a guest post. [In Which I Reblog Myself]
Aside from these successes, I don’t seem to have the touch. I go to their town. They don’t respond. They come to my town. They are busy. We both go to a third place. We fail to connect. [The Weirdness That Is National Academy, A Blogger Non-Meetup]
Other folks aren’t as interested? Other folks don’t live in the middle of rural nowhere and don’t have a debilitating deficit of people in their lives? No idea. Well, they could be taking one look at my blog and running away screaming. Even my inner voices aren’t that paranoid. Mostly.
Of course, blogger meetups are on hold, along with everything else right now. Thanks, Covid. Maybe this time next year I’ll have an adventure with new friends to report.
Stay safe. Stay sane.
Katherine Walcott
Virtual Brush Box 
I miss blogger meetups as well! Happy Blogiversary!
10q! We will again someday.